A century after the tragic events of Might & Magic Heroes VI, that determined the heroic fate of a dynasty, Shades of Darkness recounts, in two original campaigns, pivotal moments in Ashan’s darker history that will define the future of a decadent underground people and decide the survival of the dying cult of the Spider Queen.

About This Game

A century after the tragic events of Might & Magic Heroes VI, that determined the heroic fate of a dynasty, Shades of Darkness recounts, in two original campaigns, pivotal moments in Ashan’s darker history that will define the future of a decadent underground people and decide the survival of the dying cult of the Spider Queen. Determine the fates of two legendary factions; the Dark Elves of Dungeon and the Necromancers of Necropolis.

Key Features:

Master the Powers of Darkness: Lead the new Dungeon faction on a path to define the destiny of the Dark Elves, as they seek to become masters of deception, stealth, and assassination. Their future lies with Malassa, the Dragon Goddess of Darkness. Befriend her mysterious children, the Faceless, and if you dare, awaken her avatars, the legendary Black Dragons!

New Content & Original Tactics: a full new lineup of 7 creatures, new hero classes, a new town and buildings set, a new mount, dozens of new artifacts, abilities and achievements. The Dungeon gameplay is completely original and tactically challenging.

Ashan’s Darkest Paths: Play two original and thrilling campaigns starring two fan-favorite factions and their legendary heroes pitted against villains of mythical stature. Discover the fascinating nuances of Darkness that the rich and proven fantasy setting of Might & Magic is excited to unveil. There is always an even darker path.

The Must-Have Heroes VI Expansion: Shades of Darkness is a compelling conclusion to the Heroes VI experience, and an indispensable addition to every fan’s collection.

Standalone Expansion and Ideal Initiation: an ideal way to discover the critically acclaimed gameplay of Might & Magic Heroes VI. Shades of Darkness is a standalone expansion and ideal epic initiation for first time players.

Sound: DirectX 9.0-compliant sound card
*Supported Video Cards at Time of Release:
NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600/9/200/400/500 series
ATI Radeon™ HD 2600/3000/4000/5000/6000 series
Laptop versions of these cards may work, but are not supported. These chipsets are the only ones that will run this game. For the most up-to-date minimum requirement listings, please visit the FAQ for this game on our support website at: http://support.ubi.com.

I bought this because I spent a lot of time on Heroes 2 when I was a teenager, the best videoboard game ever with near-endless replayability. The random map generator is gone, and I will sorely miss it, but the game itself is pretty, runs flawlessly, and has somewhat deeper combat and hero-leveling than HoMM 2, my only reference point (I hear 3 is also considered The Best). My opinion is that if you can find a copy of HoMM 2 anywhere I might still start with that.